


Dreamsharing

by HiyokoDeservedBetter



Category: OMORI (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon-Typical Violence, Childhood Trauma, Dreams, Dreamsharing, Fluff and Angst, Friendship, Gen, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Platonic Relationships, Tags Are Hard, it gets serious at some points I promise
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-27
Updated: 2021-03-12
Packaged: 2021-03-18 09:01:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,153
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29731509
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HiyokoDeservedBetter/pseuds/HiyokoDeservedBetter
Summary: One day, Sunny hears a weird knock on his door.These hallucinations of his friends from Headspace are awfully realistic.Meanwhile, everyone in Headspace has disappeared.Omori gets some unlikely help as he searches for his friends.
Relationships: Aubrey & Basil & Hero & Kel & Sunny (OMORI), Hero & Kel (OMORI), Hero/Mari (OMORI), Mari & Sunny (OMORI)
Comments: 42
Kudos: 304





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> By the way, unlike my other two active works, this one won’t have an update schedule. I’ll update whenever inspiration strikes me.

The sound of someone getting stabbed echoed almost endlessly through the sprawling white space. The boy in question keeled onto his knees. There was no blood. 

It was the end of another day. Today, Omori had chose to stay in White Space. Everything was okay. His friends would be fine without him. 

Sunny couldn’t say the same. 

He opened his empty black eyes, almost dreading waking up. Guilt hit him like a bulldozer the moment he took a breath. He was worthless. Maybe he just should’ve died in his sleep. 

It was day. Most likely a waste to sleep again. He wasn’t THAT tired, anyway. Sunny racked his mind, curious on what to do. He wouldn’t move for another month. He didn’t have to worry about packing yet. 

Hm, chores, chores… Well, he did have to vacuum and sweep today, since it was a Saturday. He’d always hated doing those chores as a kid, but he was quite adept at it now. He might as well start working. 

Vacuuming made it hard to think over its blare. That was good. Sweeping, on the other hand, was quiet, with only the broom’s scraping to distract him from his spiraling thoughts. Sunny instead focused on keeping his mind on what he would do next. 

He would watch TV. 

5 minutes of sweeping later, Sunny sat down on the leathery couch and flicked on the TV. He absentmindedly flicked through channels. He found one that was airing old cartoons. If he focused enough, he could see his friends sitting next to him, watching with him. He allowed his thoughts to wander. Maybe he could add something new to Headspace. According to Omori, it was getting dull. 

He was wrenched out of his thoughts by a series of knocks on his door. They had been routine ever since the house had been put up for sale. Sunny was curious who it was, but he didn’t care enough to answer. 

For some reason, though, motivation shot through him. He felt an urge to open the door. He was moving in a month, right? He could afford to deviate from his daily routine. The drone of cartoons was starting to turn his brain to mush, anyway. 

Sunny got up slowly, feeling the soft carpet underneath his socks. He walked in front of the door. 

Would you like to open the door?  
>Yes  
No

Sunny’s hand twisted the metal door knob, and it gently opened. His curiosity got the best of him, and he peered around the door to see who was awaiting him. 

He fell over with a yelp of surprise, his whole body immediately beginning to tremble. No. This wasn’t real, right? He’d see characters from his dreams throughout his house, but they dissolved like sugar touching water whenever he got close. This was just… an extremely realistic hallucination. He occasionally got those after sleeping for a whole day. 

It was perfectly normal. So why was he so surprised?

“Jeez. You really think this is Omori’s house, Mari?” A familiar whiny voice asked. “He’s not usually this… loud.”

“Call it a sister’s intuition, Kel!” A kind voice replied. Sunny’s stomach twisted into knots, like a pretzel. Another knock hit the still cracked door, causing it to close a bit. 

“Omori!” A young, star struck voice insisted. “We know you’re in there!”

“Either we’re coming in or you’re coming out!” The same whiny voice boomed confidently. 

“Kel, don’t pressure him.” A brotherly voice insisted. “He’ll be out in a minute, I’m sure. I can bet he’s surprised to see us.”

“Y-Yeah, w-we’ve never really v-visited at his home before…”

If Mari wasn’t with them, Sunny would’ve thought it was his old friends, coming to visit him before he moved. How could hallucinations be so… real? The door even moved when one of them knocked and everything. He found himself desperately wanting to open the door, to see Mari again. He firmly closed his eyes and whispered to himself. 

“They’re not real.”

He still opened the door anyway. 

“Omori!” Aubrey cheered, pumping her fist in victory. 

“W-Woah, you hit a growth spurt.” Basil said with a proud smile. 

“And you don’t look as pale! Has my little brother been going out lately?” Mari teased, wearing a kind smile. It was exactly the opposite, really. 

“Cmon Omori!” Kel whined. “There’s this cool new town area we’ve never seen before! We wanna go exploreeeeeee!”

“Ahem,” Mari said, nudging him. She pointed to herself and Basil. 

“Oh, right. Well, Mari and Basil will be cheering us on.”

“Hey, Omori, are you feeling okay? You look…” Hero stumbled for the right words. 

“Surprised!”

“Shell-shocked!”

“In disbelief?”

Sunny took a deep breath. This was new. His hallucinations were growing worse. But maybe being awake wouldn’t be all too bad, now that he had… well, a version of his friends. He was about to take a step, but the sun burned his skin. It was too bright. 

“Um, why don’t you visit my house instead?” he suggested, opening the door a bit more and taking a step back. His friends regarded him with shock. 

“Woah, Omori, you spoke!” Kel cheered. 

“Are you finally being a bit more social, Omori?” Mari said with a proud smile. “I hope we helped you!”

“Your voice doesn’t sound good, though. Maybe you should take something for your throat?” Hero suggested worriedly. Sunny shook his head. 

“Ah, I don’t… have anything like that, sorry.” he mumbled. 

“I’m growing an herb that soothes sore throats!” Basil said. “I can head back to my house and give you some!”

“Way to be rude.” Aubrey scoffed. “Omori just invited us to his home for the first time! We should go in!” And with that, she walked in, holding Mr. Plantegg tightly. 

“Hm, your house is boring!” Kel groaned. “I don’t see how you can LIVE here!” Hero nudged Kel scoldingly. 

“Don’t be rude, Kel!” he reprimanded. 

This was weird. Sunny heard the footsteps his friends make echo through the house. What was it called when you heard sounds that weren’t actually being made? Auditory hallucination? He might be experiencing that, as well as his regular dose of hallucinations. He needed to test it. 

“Hey, Basil, do you have your photo album on you?” he mumbled, his cheeks burning as he spoke. He would probably look mad to an observer, speaking to air. 

“O-Oh yeah, of course!” The green haired boy dug it out of his overalls and passed it into Sunny’s lap. He just so happened to brush Basil’s arm as he did so. He felt the nice feeling cloth against his bare arm. The photo album felt nice and leathery in his lap. 

Sunny’s round black eyes widened. How… how was this…?

“Are you okay, Omori?” Mari asked worriedly, grabbing his hand. “You look out of it.”

This is real. Oh my god. He couldn’t fathom how this was possible. The only explanation was magic. Magic wasn’t real, though. Everyone knew that. 

Magic felt like the only real way to explain what he was seeing right now, though. 

“Yeah, I’m fine! It’s just weird to have everyone in my house, aha…” he explained hastily, scratching at the part of his hand that had brushed against Basil. 

“There’s something different about you today, Omori.” Aubrey said, tilting her head. Kel was not really paying all too much attention as he explored the house, Hero at his side. But he heard what Aubrey said, and stopped. 

“Yeah, and where we are, too! It doesn’t look like other areas we’ve been to!”

“D-Do you know where we are, Omori?” Basil asked hesitantly. 

“This place as called Faraway.” he explained patiently, despite his racing thoughts. This couldn’t be real. Sunny was sure he’d gone mad. 

“What a cool name!” Mari replied with a smile. 

“I bet we’re really far away from home right now.” Hero said, sighing wearily. 

“What gave that away?” Kel huffed. 

“Can we explore it, Omori?” Aubrey asked excitedly. Sunny immediately shook his head, but felt guilty for doing so as Aubrey’s face fell. 

“Why nooooooot?” Kel groaned. 

“Ah, um, because-“ Because he’d look insane if he, a shut in, was seen walking around with younger versions of Faraway residents and his sister who’s been dead for four years? “Because I thought we could have a sleepover?” 

Everyone immediately cheered. 

“Do you have enough places for us to sleep, little brother?” Mari asked. 

“Well, there’s the couch. I have some sleeping bags, and lots of pillows, and I do have a treehouse, which I was thinking we could sleep in?” Sunny said hesitantly. 

“Woah! A treehouse!” Aubrey cried, hugging Mr. Plantegg excitedly. “I wanna see!” 

“Sure, I’ll give you the tour.”

…

Omori was still conscious. He wasn’t quite sure how that was possible after he’d dug a knife into his chest. But there was something off. He could just feel it. 

Not about White Space itself, of course. It had been the same for four years. No, he felt an odd energy radiating from the door. Like someone was here. Could it be Something? No, it was only an issue for Sunny, really. 

He dug the knife out of his chest. He was Omori, after all. He didn’t succumb so easily. He approached the door and opened it. 

Neighbors’s Room was empty. 

That was odd, but it happened sometimes. Sometimes his friends were out somewhere, sometimes they were not. But Neighbor’s Room was only empty when Headspace was close to a reset, and that wasn’t needed. 

What was going on?

Vast Forest was normal. He didn’t have time to battle Sprout Moles. Omori needed to find Mari and ask her where the others were. 

Her picnic blanket was empty. 

So was the park. 

This was deviating heavily from the norm. It was like untrod territory. He’d enjoy it if he wasn’t so terrified. Omori approached the blanket, his hands balled into nervous fists, when suddenly-

“Sunny?”

He immediately whipped toward the source of the cry. His thoughts were thundering with ‘how how how’, over and over. That name had no business here. He’d find the source and kill it. 

Though, that made it extremely difficult when the source had turned out to be Kel. 

Was it Kel, though? He was taller, lankier, wearing a jersey and shorts. He wasn’t pastel. He stuck out as much as Omori did. 

Despite the shock, though, Omori continued glaring daggers. His knife was at his side, almost like a warning. 

“S-Sunny?” the voice repeated, though it started to falter. 

“No.”

“What?”

“My name is Omori.”

The imposter’s face twisted into confusion. 

“But you look just like him!”

“I’m not him. Call me that name again, and you’ll be killed.” He held up the knife. ‘Kel’ was afraid, and he took a wary step back. 

“Okay then. Um. Is this a dream or something?”

“Yes.” Omori hissed. “MY dream. Why are you here? Get out.”

“Hey, I don’t have a choice. What do you mean by that, anyway? This is all so confusing…”

“Who are you?”

“Oh-! I forgot to introduce myself. Man, that was so rude of me! I’m Kel.”

Was that a lie? No, Omori knew Kel was telling the truth. Why did he look different, though? Where was everyone?

“My friends are missing.” Omori began slowly. “Since you’re here, you might as well help me look for them.”

“Oh. Yeah. Sure, I guess.” Kel said with a shrug. “What do they look like? What are their names?” Omori couldn’t tell him that. He gave a small shrug as a half hearted response. “Wha- does that mean you don’t know?!”

“No. I do know. I just refuse to tell you.”

“God. You’re so stubborn. Are you sure you’re not Sunny?”

“…”

“Okay-! I won’t use that name anymore! Don’t stab me!!!”

And so, the pair began their trek through Headspace.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sunny may or may not be going insane. 
> 
> Really, it’s impossible to tell. 
> 
> Omori begins the search for his friends with an unlikely ally at his side.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woooooooo chapter twoooooooo!
> 
> This fic has gotten a lot of support already, which I’m thankful for! I’m gonna try my hardest to update often, but with school and my other two active fics, daily updates might not be as common. 
> 
> Keep your eyes peeled for the next chapter!

Sunny sighed softly as he stared at the ceiling of his treehouse. This was… insane. Was he insane? The same question swirled endlessly through his head, preventing his sleep. He wiggled out of his sleeping bag and stepped around his sleeping friends. 

He climbed down the ladder and sat on the grass. The cool summer air rested on his skin. He held his scarred arms close, staring up at the clear sky, twinkling with its stars. 

“Have trouble sleeping, little brother? You’ve always been restless.” A voice said from beside him. Sunny jumped in surprise. There, beside him, Mari was sitting. Her deep black hair, which had a blue filter over it, shone in the starlight. 

“Sorry.” he mumbled, fixing his gaze on the grass they were sitting on. 

“You know, Sunny, you’re always like this.” she said with a dejected sigh. “You don’t have to apologize for anything.” Sunny stared at Mari blankly. 

“…Sunny?”

“Oh, sorry, do you prefer Omori?” she replied, propping her hands behind her as she leaned back. “You know I’ve always been smart, little brother. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out why this all feels… off.” She gave an innocent shrug. Sunny was silent. 

“What do you remember?”

“Bits and pieces, really.” Mari replied, her expression suddenly serious. “Even if I don’t know the full story, I still feel guilty.”

“You shouldn’t. It’s my fault.”

“C’mon Sunny, you shouldn’t blame yourself.” Mari insisted with a weary sigh. “How long has it been since I died? Three years? Maybe four? I’m sure the others have moved on. Why haven’t you?”

“It’s not that easy.” Sunny said bitterly. 

“I can tell. But, even so…” Mari grabbed Sunny’s arm with a grim expression. They stared at each other for a moment. “Take care of yourself, okay?”

“I’ll… try. Thanks, Mari.”

“That’s what a big sister is for!” She enveloped him in a hug. How long had it been since he’d felt the warmth of an embrace? No one had ever hugged him after he’d killed Mari. They were huddled together for a moment before Sunny untangled himself. 

“Aren’t you tired?” he mumbled, still feeling lingering warmth. 

“Aren’t you?” she countered, smiling smugly. 

“Not really. All I ever do is sleep.”

“Hm, that’s not healthy. You need to get out more! We should go exploring tomorrow.”

“Mari…”

“Hehe,” she chuckled. “It’s going to be hard to hold Kel back.”

“Well, we could just explore the forest behind my house.” Sunny suggested. “That’s its own adventure. And I can avoid town so no one looks at me weird.”

“That’s my little brother, always coming up with creative solutions.” Mari encouraged. She grabbed his hand, which immediately warmed up. “C’mon, let’s get some rest.”

The two climbed up the treehouse ladder and slipped into their sleeping bags. For the first time, Sunny was entertaining the idea of forgiving himself. 

…

Omori had been walking around with Kel for at most 5 minutes and he felt like he could sleep for a week. Man, the rambunctious teen was exhausting. 

“Well, I can conclude the playground is absolutely 100 percent empty!” Kel proclaimed, bounding over to meet Omori. “Is there anywhere else we can search?”

In response, Omori unrolled his map of Headspace and spread it out on the playgrounds sand. Kel’s brown eyes widened as he stared at it. 

“The closest place is the Vast Forest.” Omori said, pointing at the scrawled trees covering a portion of the map. “From there, we can take the ladder to Otherworld-“ He pointed at the ladder. “which takes us to Junkyard and Pinwheel Forest.” He used two hands to point to both locations. “Pinwheel Forest also has a train, which leads to Orange Oasis and Rain Town.” He pointed to a line of train tracks that led to two islands. “If we don’t find one of my friends, we’ll make a second plan.”

Kel nodded thoughtfully. “This place is huge!” he commented. 

“…It feels small once you’ve been here for a while.” 

Omori rolled his map and pocketed it. Kel walked behind him almost automatically. The two walked through the playground and made it into the Vast Forest. The vegetation was everywhere, as well as bunnies and Sprout Moles. 

“What is that?” Kel asked with wide eyes. Omori passed Hero’s Foe Facts! book to Kel. He flipped through it until he reached the Sprout Mole page. “Oh.” Omori snatched up the book before Kel could read anymore. 

“We go south from here,” he noted, pointing in the direction of Basil’s house. “I doubt he’s there, but it best to check.”

“Where are we going, exactly?” Kel protested indignantly. 

“Friends house.” was all Omori said as he started walking again. Kel nodded and followed dutifully behind Omori. 

As the pair walked, Omori stopped in front of each flower patch, watering the flowers that had started to wilt. 

“You have a green thumb, huh?” Kel asked as he helped Omori water. “So does my friend Basil. I don’t think you two would get along, though.”

“We get along better then you think.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” 

They kept on walking until Omori stopped at the giant shoe. 

“Haha! Oh man, your friend lives HERE?” Kel laughed, unable to help himself. 

“Yes.” Omori replied, glaring daggers at Kel once again. He immediately quieted down, squirming uncomfortably under Omori’s glare. They entered the shoe. Omori let out a long breath. 

“Hm, this place looks… messy? Unkempt? Uh… dilapidated?” Kel said, firing off some good adjectives that fit the state of Basil’s house. 

“Well, there’s no leads here.” Omori said, already turning around. 

“What about this giant hole?” Kel objected. Omori walked out of the house in eerie silence. Kel had to hurry to catch up. “Hey, don’t leave me behind!”

“The ladder to Otherworld is at the left side of the forest.” Omori said once they reached the fork in the road. “I’ll look at that end. You look on the right end. If you don’t find anyone, meet me at the ladder.” Kel nodded dubiously. 

“I’m not sure who I’m looking for, but I’ll keep an eye out.” he said, turning right at the fork in the road. Omori went left. 

Guessing by Kel’s attention span, this would take a while. 

…

Sunny woke up. 

It was odd he didn’t go to White Space that night, but that wasn’t the first thought on his mind. 

He immediately looked around him. His friends were still sleeping soundly. Well, Hero’s sleeping bag was empty, but he’d always been an early riser anyway. 

He let out a long breath and fiddled with the zipper on his sleeping bag for a moment. He got up quietly and climbed down the ladder. He walked back into his house to the sound of sizzling bacon. Sunny’s stomach immediately grumbled. 

“Oh! Good morning, Omori!” Hero called as he flipped some bacon. 

“Making breakfast?”

“Yup! I wanted Mari to help me, but she looked so peaceful. Bacon and eggs isn’t exactly complicated, though, so I’ll be fine!”

“…Okay.”

“Breakfast is about to be ready, so you should go wake everyone up!” Hero said cheerily. Sunny nodded. 

“Sure, I can do that.” 

Sunny opened his sliding door and headed out back again. He once again scaled the ladder and entered the treehouse. Light was starting to pour through the windows. 

One by one, Sunny woke everyone up, telling them to go to his kitchen for breakfast. For a brief moment, he was left alone, which allowed him to reflect on just how weird this all was. 

He didn’t stay for too long. 

Sunny made his way into the kitchen and sat down at his dining room table. His friends were there, waiting for him. It was almost just like old times. 

Almost. 

His friends were already talking about something, but Sunny didn’t feel like joining in. He silently ate the best meal he’d had in years, just allowing himself to live in the moment. 

Just allowing himself to be with his friends. 

...

Omori watched as the tanned boy walked toward him. 

“You didn’t find anyone.” It wasn’t a question, more-so a statement. 

“Only bunnies and Sprout Moles.” Kel replied. The two were silent for a moment. “Hey, Omori? How do I… leave this place?”

Omori was expecting this question, sure, but not so soon. And despite himself, he’d gotten attached to Kel. He knew Kel wasn’t just a part of this dream. He played the role of Dreamer now, just like Omori. 

And for the Dreamer, escape was cruel. 

“Hm. I expected you to ask that.” he said with a small shrug. “You might wanna close your eyes.” Kel looked quizzical, but he obeyed, his brown eyes closing. “I can’t say this won’t hurt, but you’ll only feel it for a moment.”

Omori brought out his knife.

Omori raised his knife. 

Omori stabbed Kel. 

…

Kel woke up, grasping at his stomach while breathing heavily. 

“That was the weirdest dream I’ve ever had.” he said aloud, his heart still thundering. His thoughts swirled with the weird made up world and its weird inhabitants and… Omori. 

Kel wasn’t too sure how his mind had even come up with all that. That weird knife wielding version of Sunny… oh, right, Sunny! Maybe that dream was a sign he needed to visit. Kel had spotted that FOR SALE sign, after all. He at least wanted to see Sunny before he left. 

It was kinda early, though. Sunny had never been an early bird. Despite that, Kel still wanted to try. So, he hurriedly made his toast and almost choked. He didn’t brush his teeth for nearly enough time, but that was fine. Kel pulled on a jersey and shorts. 

He set out in the crisp morning air, walking over to Sunny’s house optimistically. He’d tried a couple times already, and each time he was ignored. But Kel was nothing if he wasn’t persistent. He found himself standing in front of Sunny’s door. 

With only a slight bit of hesitation, he knocked.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kel discovers a surprising secret of Sunny’s. 
> 
> Maybe someone should tell Sunny he has a secret as well...
> 
> Aubrey wakes up in a junkyard reminiscent of her home. 
> 
> Who knows what she could find?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’ve updated 2 of my fics today my creative juices are spent

“I’ll get it!” Kel yelled immediately, bolting out of his chair. He tripped over it in his haste on landed on the ground with a THUMP. Aubrey couldn’t help but snicker. 

“You have to be careful, Kel!” Mari lectured. “You should always push in your chair, after all. Or else accidents like this happen!”

Sunny got up warily. “It’s fine. I’ll answer the door.” He pushed in his seat, not wanting a repeat of what had just happened. He approached the door. If Omori was at the door, Sunny would… well, he didn’t know what he would do, but he certainly knew what Omori would do. 

Would you like to open the door?  
>Yes  
No

Sunny’s hand twisted around the cold metal. He hesitantly pushed the door open, all that could be seen was a small crack. All he could see was orange and accents of white. That wasn’t helpful. He cracked the door open a bit more. There, staring at him with wide eyes, was Kel. 

The real Kel, not some blue filtered imitation. 

“Oh!” he said, regarding Sunny with wide eyed surprise. “I- uh- wasn’t expecting you to answer the door. Are you okay? I heard some loud thumping, and I thought you might’ve fallen- and, uh, what’s up?”

Sunny stayed silent as he regarded Kel, his gaze passive. He stayed silent, though. Kel noticed this, but for whatever reason, he stayed silent as well, staring at Sunny. 

“I- I know it’s been a while, but, uh…” Kel twiddled his fingers. “You’re moving away and all, so I just thought…”

“You wanna hang out with me?” Sunny guessed. Kel blinked, surprised to see Sunny talk. He was kinda surprised too, but he was getting used to it after spending so much time with his friends. 

“Right! Yes!” Kel said eagerly. 

“Right. Well, I’m busy packing, so I don’t have time.” Sunny said flatly, getting ready to close the door. He had no idea what mischief his friends would get up to without him, and he had zero intention of finding out. 

“Oh! Right, that makes sense. I could help!” Sunny immediately shook his head. 

“No, no, I got it…”

“Do you? Your arms look all banged up, heh…” Sunny immediately buried his arms behind his back. “And that thump sounded painful, too… I can help! And I just kinda… wanna spend time with you?” 

Oh. Loneliness was the issue. With Kel giving him those puppy dog eyes, it felt impossible to say no. See, the issue was he HAD to say no. Even if Kel couldn’t see his Headspace friends, which he was pretty sure he could, it would still be incredibly awkward.

“Ugh.” Sunny sighed, crossing his arms. “Don’t give that face. You have other things to do, right? Maybe homework or something?”

“Uh, Sunny, schools been out for a month…”

“Oh.”

“Anyway, I’ve been trying to get a hold of you ever since your mom put your house up for sale! I’m not turning back now!” Kel gave Sunny a confident look. Sunny really couldn’t take this peer pressure. Despite the risk, he was about to relent. 

Which is when Mini Kel decided to walk into the hallway. 

“Hey Omori! Who are you talking to?!”

“Omor-?” Kel began, surprised by the name he used. But then he got a good look at Mini Kel. “Waaaait a minute.” Sunny huffed irritably. This was exactly what he wanted to avoid. 

“Woah! A basketball player! You’re so tall!” Mini Kel exclaimed, jumping up and down. “What’s your name, Mr?” 

“Ah, um…” Kel shifted uncomfortably, staring at Sunny. He avoided his glance. 

“Kel!” Hero reprimanded as he made his way through into the doorway. “You can’t just bother random people!” To Kel, he said “I’m sorry about my brother, he’s yet to learn manners.”

“Huh.” Kel said quietly. 

“Well, I wanted to avoid this.” Sunny mumbled. “But since you’re here, you should just… come in.” Kel was motionless, so Sunny dragged him in. 

“Our other friends are in the kitchen.” Hero called. 

“Huh.” Kel repeated. 

“Hey everyone!” Mini Kel announced loudly. “Omori brought a friend over!” 

“Huh.” Kel whispered, 

Mari gave a warm smile. Kel’s jaw went slack. Sunny nudged Kel sharply. 

“You look like an older version of Kel. Do you act like him, too?” Aubrey said with an annoyed sigh.

“Aubrey! You shouldn’t be so rude to strangers!” Mari scolded.

“U-Um, I’m Basil.” the shy boy stuttered. “This is Mari, Hero, Kel, and Aubrey. I’m sure you already know Omori.”

“Yeeeeeeah.” Kel replied through gritted teeth, his body tense. “I’m…” His gaze was rooted on Mini Kel. “Uh.”

“This is my friend Kelsey, he plays basketball.” Sunny said hurriedly. Kel let out a long breath. 

“Nice to meet you???” Good thing no one noticed how weird Kel was acting. Sunny already had to do a hearty bit of explaining he had to do, so he was lucky he didn’t have to do anymore. 

“We just finished having breakfast!” Hero supplied. “I have a little bit left, do you want some?” Kel gave a small thumbs up, allured by the prospect of good food despite his shock. He grabbed himself a plate and sat down at an empty spot at the table and took a bite. 

“Wow, these are really good! Thanks… Hero.” Kel said awkwardly. He eventually finished and Kel stared down at his empty plate, his gaze troubled. 

“I’ll get your plates!” Mari said with a hum. She washed the plates and put them in the dishwasher. 

“I wanna play hide and seek!” Mini Kel whined, jumping up and down. “Omori has such a big backyard! It would be fun to play in!” 

“Yeah, that’s fine.” Sunny said with a weary sigh. “You all can go ahead, me and Kel…sey need to do something real quick.”

“Okay!” Aubrey replied cheerily. “See you in a little bit, Omori!” The group left for the backyard. Kel grabbed Sunny’s arm with a wide eyed expression. 

“WHAT.”

“Great.” Sunny huffed. “I can simplify this as much as I want and you’d still be confused.”

“You can try!!!”

“Well, what do you think I was doing for the 4 years I was shut in?” Kel shrugged. “I was sleeping, and sleeping a whole lot. I kinda had my own dream world in my head. It was really paradise. And… you know, I dreamed about us before Mari died. It was better then having to live in the real world.”

Kel nodded thoughtfully, his face growing grim. “So… uh… what about that whole Omori thing?” Sunny winced. 

“Well… Mari’s death was kinda the issue? Because I knew the truth and all, the world kept… cracking. So I had to make an alter ego for myself. The world still cracked because of… stuff, but less. The, ah, dream versions of you guys don’t know I’m not actually Omori, so can you keep up that façade?”

“Sure, whatever. How are they here, though?” Kel pressured. 

Sunny snorted. “Who knows?”

“That’s not remotely helpful.” 

“Eh. We can figure it out later, if we ever do. C’mon, we shouldn’t keep them waiting.” Sunny said, walking out of the kitchen. Kel followed him, still dazed. 

He held his tongue on anything about his dream, and he still wasn’t sure how much of a good idea that was. 

….

Aubrey’s eyes slowly blinked open. She was lying on a pile of junk. She grumbled discontentedly at the discomfort, but then focused on something much more concerning: where was she? 

When she had drifted off into sleep, she was cuddling next to Kim, having a sleepover at her house. Here was someplace completely different. The sky was a bright purple, filled with white doodles drifting lazily through the sky. 

“Oh.” she said simply. “This is a dream.” A very realistic dream. She could feel the junk jutting through her jacket and digging into her skin. This place looked so much like the hellhole she called home. 

Aubrey got to her feet, an annoyed sigh escaping her throat. This dream felt so… real, so lucid. Maybe she could stop and think about why this dream felt so odd, but she had one priority: getting out of this smelly cesspit. 

As she walked, she encountered all sorts of strange things. Sentient boom boxes and mixtapes, a shark plane, and a painfully slow dialup computer, all of which she bashed in with her bat. She also ran into sentient conveyor belts, which were supposed to only change direction with the power of kindness, but threats and a couple bashes of her bat, mobility was no problem for her. 

Eventually, she made it to this strange sort of planet, with a giant crescent moon as its centerpiece. There was a couple of empty picnic baskets scattered about, which… hurt. 

Aubrey saw a bit of movement in the near distance. It seemed to be person shaped, and they looked black and white. She decided to approach it. If it was a friend, great! She wouldn’t be alone with stuck in this odd place. If it was a foe… well, let’s just say it wouldn’t have the best day. 

As Aubrey got closer, she was able to to lake out more and more features, until she stopped dead in her tracks. 

Standing there with a guarded expression was Sunny.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aubrey explores Headspace. 
> 
> Something about this place seems... off. 
> 
> Sunny’s friends play Hide and Seek.

Well, if Aubrey wasn’t sure this was a dream, she certainly was now. After all, here was Sunny, looking just the way she remembered him. Well, the monochromatic part was new, but still. 

Part of her idly wondered how much Sunny had changed in the last four years. Another part was curious why she was having dreams about him. Another part still wanted to beat him bloody. She was still enraged that he’d left them and stayed inside of his house for four whole years. She huffed. Aubrey tried to keep that part of her under wraps, but she couldn’t help it sometimes.

The monochromatic Sunny suddenly stopped, as if surprised by something. Aubrey took this as an opportunity to get closer. She squinted her teal eyes at the boy and was hit with a realization.

This was not Sunny.

Oh, sure, it LOOKED like him. But Sunny’s eyes didn’t feel soulless. He never felt... wrong to be around, like this monochromatic clone did. Now Aubrey was confused. Was her head really messed up or something? Was that the explanation for this... incredibly odd (and extremely lucid) dream? Aubrey huffed, crossing her arms. Why couldn’t her head make more sense?!

The boy looked over at her. His expression changed slightly, though Aubrey wasn’t close enough to tell what he was feeling. She subconsciously took a step back at his glare, feeling... afraid. Why was she afraid of this kid?! She was four years older than him! Aubrey could punt him across this planet, easy!

Oh, wait, this kid has a knife.

…

He has a KNIFE?!

Now Aubrey was REALLY backing away. She absolutely refused to be near the weird knife kid. Wait, she still had her bat on her! Well, if she got convicted of murder, at least she could say it was in self-defense. She brandished the nail bat threateningly, causing the kid to halt.

“Stay back, weird knife kid!” she warned. “I have a nail bat, and I’m NOT afraid of being convicted of murder.” The kid raised his knife in response. “Yes, I’m AWARE you have a knife, that’s why I have my bat out in the first place!” The kid sighed and cast his knife aside. It skittered across the dirt until it came to a stop, sitting placidly a good ways away from the two. Aubrey was satisfied by this, and she lowered her bat. “Who are you? You look like Sunny, but I KNOW you aren’t him.” The boy flinched slightly. 

“…Right. Not Sunny. I’m Omori.”

“Omori? Like the piano brand?” A shrug in response. “Okay. Uh. Aubrey.” Omori raised an eyebrow. “That’s my name. Do you know where I am?”

“Otherworld.”

“That’s not helpful, but I doubt I’m getting anything out of you.”

“That assumption would be correct.” 

“Ughh. You’re the definition of stubborn.” 

“So I’ve been told.”

“God, this stupid dream is so WEIRD.” Aubrey complained. “Tell me, figment of my imagination, why am I here? Why have I dreamt this?” Omori looked slightly amused. 

“Not exactly a figment of YOUR imagination. To answer your question, though, I can’t be sure. But, while you’re here,” Omori gestured around him. “My friends have gone missing. Mind if you help look around for them?” 

“…Eh. Why not. Just as long as we stay away from THAT trash heap.” Aubrey pointed back to the Junkyard. Omori shrugged in response. 

“Well, I can do what I did last time I had some help. I don’t mind splitting up. I’ll take the Junkyard, you take the Pinwheel Forest. We’ll reconvene in front of that picnic blanket by the ladder.” he proposed. Aubrey frowned at the mention of the picnic blanket. She couldn’t help but think about Mari. 

“Sounds good, except for one small detail. What do your friends look like? I don’t want to look around aimlessly for someone who’s name and appearance j don’t even know.” Omori scowled, and Aubrey took another instinctive step back. That was the wrong question to ask. 

“I’ll give you appearances, but not names.”

“Oddly specific, but I’ll take what I can get.”

“One has a checked shirt and shorts, with shoulder length hair. Another wears blue and white striped pajamas and has messy hair. The third has hair a little shorter then yours, not your color though. She wears a teal nightgown and wears a pink bow.”

That description sounded familiar, but Aubrey couldn’t figure out why. It… wasn’t important, right?

“Another has mint green hair and wears overalls. He has a flower crown of several colors. The last is…” Omori stared at the empty picnic blanket wistfully before continuing. For a moment, Aubrey wondered if he was thinking of Mari, but immediately reprimanded himself at the thought. It wasn’t like he KNEW Mari. “She has straight, black hair. She also wears a black vest with a white polo under it, along with a skirt.”

When Aubrey tried to envision each person Omori described, they were often faceless. But for the last one, the description fit Mari almost perfectly. So much so that whenever Aubrey tired to imagine anything else, it just came out as Mari. Was that because she was thinking about her? 

“Right. Okay. Names would help, but appearances work.” Aubrey said, trying not to seem exasperated. She pointed in the direction of towering pinwheel flowers, seeming like the embiggened versions her hometown was littered with. “I’m searching there, right?” Omori nodded. “Cool. See you later, weird knife kid.” 

Aubrey walked away, feeling Omori’s inky black eyes staring at her retreating figure. She felt slightly at more ease when away from the boy, who stuck out like a sore thumb in this pastel world of space pirates and desolate picnic blankets. 

Aubrey’s search was mostly worthless. The forest was full of aggressive bunnies (what an odd thought!) and a boy with a seemingly sentient kite. He seemed to be really enjoying himself though, so Aubrey chose to leave him in peace. 

This dream made her feel fuzzy inside. It was a sprawling world her brain had decided to gift her, a relief from the stress her waking hours provided. Part of her never wanted to leave. A more sensible part of her recognized that as bad. 

Aubrey turned into a more secluded glade of the forest. In the middle of it, there was a stump, out of place amongst the trees surrounding it. 

Just for a moment, Aubrey had seen… something. It was hovering above the tree slightly, staring almost accusingly her way. It was as black as Omori’s hair. Its coloring wasn’t the worst part, though it certainly seemed out of place. The worst part was its eye, right in the center. Then it disappeared into thin air. 

The moment Aubrey saw it, she was filled with a terror so sharp she nearly fell over. Mixed in was guilt and heart wrenching guilt. With all of those feelings combined, Aubrey fell to her knees, letting out a wail despite herself. 

She felt like how she did when she discovered Mari’s death, but tenfold. When she could focus again, she immediately blurted the first thought that had come to her mind. 

“What the FUCK was that?!” Aubrey snarled, brushing away half formed tears. This was enough for her to never want to sleep again. How DARE her brain lure her into a false sense of security, then show her some eldrich horror abomination and fill her with all the worst feelings at once?! This place was miserable. She wanted out. 

Aubrey reached out to pinch herself, but that accompanied nothing. Well, unless you count a sharp pain as something, which she did not. 

She hissed swears under her breath as she stormed out of the clearing. The dreamworld no longer seemed as peaceful. She found herself looking around every corner, suspicious. What if she ran into that weird… thing again?! 

She eventually made it back to Otherworld, where Omori was sitting peacefully. He was eating some space tube food she hadn’t seen there before. 

“Oi!” she called sharply. Omori whipped around to face her, his gaze curious. “You seem to know a lot about this place. Now tell me; how the FUCK do I leave?!” Omori regarded her in disgruntled silence. 

“I gather you didn’t find anything, then.” he said quietly. He brandished his knife, and Aubrey narrowed her teal eyes. 

“Don’t fuck around!” she snarled. “I tried pinching myself, and all it made me do was feel like shit!” Aubrey usually didn’t run her mouth all too much, but she was stressed and irritated. Omori shrugged. 

“Close your eyes, if you want. It’ll only hurt for a minute.” Aubrey had only opened her mouth slightly before Omori stabbed her in the chest. She yelped and keeled over, feeling the warm blood flow across her tank top and jacket. All she could do was stare at Omori with an expression of betrayal before she woke up. 

“Aubs? Aubs? Aubrey?!” She heard Kim’s voice, slowly growing more and more panicked as Aubrey remained asleep. Aubrey immediately shot up, breathing heavily. “Oh! You’re up!”

“Nightmare.” she said gruffly. 

“I could tell.” Kim replied grimly. “You were breathing heavily and talking in your sleep. Are… you’re okay, right?”

“I don’t want to talk about it.” Aubrey said wearily. Both were aware Aubrey never actually answered Kim’s question. “Weren’t we going to to hang out at the lake today?” Kim straightened her back, tugging at her baggy hoodie. 

“Yeah! I was waking you up so you could brush your hair and stuff?” Kim offered. Aubrey nodded, letting her thankfulness reach her face. 

“Okay. Wait for me in the living room. I should be out in a bit.”

Once Aubrey made it into the bathroom, she let out a long sigh as she stared at herself in the mirror. She held her head in her hands for a long moment. Aubrey couldn’t help but be confused. It was the oddest dream she’d ever had, officially beating out that dream she had when she was 9 about her becoming an angel and wishing all water was replaced with candy. 

…Honestly? It kinda made her wanna visit Sunny. Which was stupid. He’d never come out of his house. She’d try to push that dream out of her head and focus on the here and now. 

Despite how heard she tried to forget it, though, she doubted she’d be able to forget the feeling of being stabbed and bleeding out on the grass. 

...

“Twenty ONE, twenty TWO, twenty THREE!” Mini Kel boomed as the pair walked out. He was the only one in the backyard. 

Oh no. 

“Ah- um- Kel.” Sunny said stiffly. “Are… you… playing Hide and Seek?” Mini Kel gave a thumbs up until he reached 30, and then he turned to Kel and Sunny, beaming. 

“Yup! You can help me look!” Mini Kel said excitedly. 

“Do you have any limits for where people can hide?” Kel asked dubiously. 

“Nope! It doubles as an exploration… ah… um… thing!” Mini Kel said eagerly. Kel looked nervous, while Sunny just looked tired. 

“Then we might as well find them as soon as possible.” he said wearily. Kel’s nerves were growing by the minute. Sunny felt as nervous as he did, to be honest. Oh well. He was moving, he had a dead sister, and maybe he’d get lucky and his friends wouldn’t be anywhere near the town. 

Eh. He doubted that. 

“As soon as possible.” Kel echoed. Mini Kel jumped up and down. 

“Aw yeah! I’m gonna find Aubrey immediately and she’s gonna be so maaaaaaaad!” he said with a grin. Sunny took the lead and motioned for the other two to follow. 

This was gonna be awkward, wasn’t it?


End file.
